Let the games begin

The break finally ends Thursday night.
The Senators start the road to trying to make the playoffs with the Detroit Red Wings in town. A massive two points on the line.
For 18 days, the Senators trailed the Wings by one point for the final playoff spot. Today, the gap is three. If they lose tonight in regulation, the gap is five.
This is an uphill battle.
Sportsclubstats.com gives the Senators a 26.4% chance of making the post-season. Those are long odds. They’ll plunge if they don’t beat the Red Wings. There is no reason Ottawa shouldn’t: The club has played well against Detroit this season and the Wings played Wednesday night in Montreal.
The club even had to go to OT to get a win.
You have to wonder if the Senators suffer a couple of losses before the trade deadline the club’s approach will change. GM Bryan Murray wants to be a buyer badly. He wants to get a powerful winger who can help out with the scoring.
If they lose tonight and in Vancouver Sunday does that change the way the organization looks at the deadline?
It’s interesting because the race is so tight.
One loss can be so devastating. Hang on it’s going to be a wild ride in the final 23 games. Leafs aren’t sitting pretty either with lots of teams chasing. Should be fun.
Stay tuned here throughout the trade deadline.

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36 comments

I am so glad to get back to watching NHL hockey, the Olympic version was a chore and a bore. I did watch it all though.

The Wings shouldn’t present a real challenge for the Senators tonight, they will be withough 5 regulars including their best player. The also had 10 players who participated in the Olympics a world away and…they played a game last night that went into over-time. Anything can happen of course but a loss would be a little embarrassing.

Things can go south in a hurry though if the lose and the Canucks waiting in the weeds. But it isn’t just Detroit the team needs to worry about. Columbus, Washington, Carolina and New Jersey are all threats. Murray says he likes the team the way it is, but if they only have a 26% chance to play in the post season you have to ask yourself why? The question is even more compelling when you consider his team sent the lowest number of players to the Olympics in Sochi! This may not mean much to some believers but my translation is they don’t stack up. Bryan’s boys 63 points is only better than 9 other teams in the 30 team league and others are coming on strong (NJ, Carolina, Winnipeg). The Sens have allowed 191 goals the 3rd most in the league! So what is it exactly that Murray likes?

Before the games began in the fall, some here said the Defence was the team’s achilles heal; that ended up being true and it continues today with 23 games left. You couple that with the goalie tandem not performing like they did last year and you have a blueprint for a 26% chance to make the post season!

The local media all predicted great things from the Sens and up unitl just before Sochi, most believed (or, at least they said it) the team was going to advance. Will the team look the same if the inevitable should happen. No. Why would it Bruce…this is the 4t year of the 3 year rebuild and then there is the 5th and 6th year of the 3 year rebuild when he team will win the Prize! All of it nonsense of course and ALL of it completely ignored.

This hockey club will look different, certainly. When Ryan’s contract is up, he will be gone. When Methot’s contract is up…he may consider taking his struggling game to a place where it will be appreciated. Spezza will be dealt and he will be paired with hockey players and his offensive numbers will soar and he will be appreciated (those who are second on their respective teams in scoring are celebrated in other cities). Zzzz will get his wish and center a line and his numbers will get even worse. He will flame out by Christmas on next year (or at least it will finally be recognized as a flame out).

What will be the consequence of the Sens missing the playoffs this year? Nothing I say. What would be the consequence of them missing next year…nothing…the GM is under contract. We fans of hockey will have to watch and reminisce about the days when the Sens challenged year after year.

Mental note – if the Senators don’t win in back-to-back games they are allowed to use the excuse they are tired.

Hoping the boys have some jump for sure and all the games are pretty much must-win at this stage but especially against teams that are right around us in the standings. The OT game last night wasn’t good and have to hope that NJ and Columbus can have NJ win in regulation.

Will be tough for sure and I agree that “liking this team alot” or whatever the BM quote is probably a little misleading. I would think in general he likes the team’s overall position considering how young the team is, how much cap space is available and how well one of the youngest teams in the AHL is doing this year.

I think almost everyone said that D was going to be the weakest link on the Senators as if anything they got worse than last years mirage (giving up lots of shots and scoring chances but having outstanding goaltending) so this doesn’t shock me at all. What shocked me early was how unsteady the team looked but now they seem to be playing a much better team game so we will see how these final weeks go.

If they don’t make the play-offs I won’t be too disappointed at all, they don’t have a legit shot at the Cup anyway so it will just save me some money.

So the Sens got beat badly. Gryba, Cowen, Philips and Ceci were minus 10. Zzzz lumbered around and didn’t go into a corner first the entire night. He didn’t carry the puck 10 feet. He didn’t win a single battle and he didn’t register a single hit. He registered 3 shots (I know of 2 and they came from 120 degree angle…virtually no chance of scoring). Karly set up with a beautiful drop pass and he didn’t eve expect it!!!! This my friends is the future. Hoffman, the guy I wanted the team to promote and invest 10+ games the last 2 years looked absolutely fabulous. With any luck he could have scored 3 goals! Who do you think was the player who shone eary in the year in Bingo, Zzzz or Hoffman? Who is a skater (the Hoff is blisteringly fast)? Who is a “shooter”(the Hoff has a rocket and he lets it go in a flash). Who shows poise with the puck and willing to carry it for extended periods of time? Who put himself in positions to score? Who created opportunities for others? I hope he gets a good long look!

Neil is an idiot; perhaps he should focus on defending rather than failing to intimidate.

The Sens have now allowed 197 goals against, the are closing fast on Edmonton’s 199 and the Islanders 200. Are we to assume the DAC and DAACs are powerless to stop it? If this team is playing a good team game, damn I would hate to see tham play bad! This is what Bryan and Tim Murray built. This is what we fans get after rebuilding the last 3 years! But we should be optimistic….there is a lot of cap space.

So the hockey club will be great with Turris, Spezza and…..Zibanisbad at center. Smith is conspicuous in his absence here and he is infinitely better than Zzzz in every way!

Zzzz put us to sleep again last night. He didn’t score a goal, he has but 4 in 32 games! But he isn’t a goal scorer, he is a playmaker…say what? He has 14 assists in 50 games and Conacher has 16. Conacher doesn’t play with the best and doesn’t see PP time like Zzzz does. Should Conacher play in the middle? No Zzzz isn’t a goal scorer or a playmaker but he is responsible in his own end…but he never, ever wins a one on one battle, is never first in the corner to retrieve a puck and he’s minus 12!!!??? No he doesn’t score goals, doesn’t make plays, is a liabiltiy on the ice, can’t skate or carry the puck but he is physical….but wait, he didn’t register a single hit last night!!!??? Oh, he was 46% at the dots! So how an anyone say they “like him in the middle”. The DAC gave him well over 4 minutes on the PP…PLAYING CENTER!!!!!!!!! Go figure!

But some here are entertained by Zzzz’s play and belive he will be a big part of the team’s Stanley Cup winning team in ’16! . We non-believers are “haters”. Just like we were called haters for suggesting Cowen wasn’t a good choice by the Murrays (who are great evaluators for talent). The behemoth had a single hit last night and his lack of mobility was on full display (why the DAC put him and Gryba together is a question for the ages but my suspicion is, Methot was more valuable covering for Karlsson).

We ‘haters” loved JGP’s heart and passion but knew from the get go he wasn’t NHL material and we haters made the same call for: Butler, Rund’sbad, DaCosta et al. Those who loved em all must be “lovers”.

A player isn’t necessarily a center because he lines up in the middle (just like a defenceman isn’t necessarily a defenceman because he line up on the back end). Centers must want the puck and must be willing and cabable of carrying the puck…Hoffman would be infinitely better at center than Zzzz, he had the puck on his stick in one game longer than Zzzz had the entire year! There are some who say “but he is young” and sometimes that is a legitimate excuse but only a kid has demonstrated he possess the inate skills necessary. In spite of all the hype, Zzzz can’t skate (certainly not around or through people). Zzzz is uncomfortable with the puck on his stick. He isn’t stable, he isn’t physical. Will these all emerge over time?

The kid has been given more opportunity than anyone to be successful (shamefully so). He has been awful but like everything else here in Ottawa, the standards have been lowered considerably. I remember Vermette playing on the 3rd and mostly 4th line and scoring 20 goals (he is still doing it in Phoenix).

Perhaps someday, some of the “lovers” will join we “haters” and see the flaws and there are many (and it starts with the General Manager).

Oh boy! That bloody rust will kill ya. So much for the fatigue factor. As Pav would tell you “Its too early to panic” but if I am Murray, I start panicking right now. I wonder if he will make any moves? I think Murray is dammed if he does and dammed if he doesn’t. On a passing note, Lehner has not looked sharp for sometime now. I hope this is just my imagination and not another case of over-evaluating another prospect.

Given this organizations propensity for double talk, hyperbole, and conflicting statements, it’s comforting to see that we have someone among us who can interpret for us what the owner and his officers are REALLY saying, in pretty deep detail as well!
Enjoy your cap space, it’s really only a asset if you have some intention of using it, can’t keep track of the ever changing winds but the last pronouncement was I believe that nothing had really changed despite the influx of multi millions in revenue and this team was going to remain on a strict budget and was not going to spend anywhere near the cap. Those who do are dopes and suckers.
Tomorrow that could turn on a dime given the track record and no eyes will blink or any questions will be asked by anyone including local media. I suspect however, that as long as a casino is even a remote possibility we will continue to see the campaign of leveraging, arm twisting and crying poor that has gone on for many months now.

Have to say Hoffman looked quite good last night – if he scores on that early chance (that Bobby Ryan eventually kicked in) that game might have turned out very differently…he had a number of chances, looked confident and generally played like you would want him to play.

Also liked him on the point on the PP but didn’t think we generated enough shots.

On the whole – Lehner was garbage and once it got out of hand the Wings were able to just sit back and there really was no chance of a come back. If we get to 7 points behind a wild card spot I think we can say there is no hope for the post season.

The Hoff did look great Dave…but Donny was the only one to write about it. You have to wonder why. He needs to change his name to Hoffmansson (got to add the extra S).

The DAC thinks “you have to play with fear in your belly”. I never bought into, you have to play “desperate” hockey and “fear” is another term that stupid. I suspect Maclean suffers “fear” and well he should, he and his sidekicks have failed miserably! Goals continue to be scored on them and “structure” is the easiest thing to implement!!!! Because the Coach is insecure, he shouldn’t impose it on the players!!!!

Franzen was right on about the “Big Show” (I think that too is appropriate and accurate). The big Swede is no threat to fight; who cares how big he is, he is a hockey player not an aging fool desperate for attention. If Neil really and truly is only focussed on helping is team, he wouldn’t take so many foolish penalties. He used to be a honest hard nosed hockey player, now he is a dirty hockey player who takes takes cheap shots and tries to intimidate those who can’t fight back.

An author with the other paper suggests the loss to Detroit was necessary to convince the GM the “young team isn’t ready for the post season”. Hello! The team has been awful all year and for years!!!! When will the media simply say the GM has failed (when will they print the DAAC and DAACs failed).

It shouldn’t surprise anybody the “Heritage Classic” is a collosal failure! Really and truly, who wants to see the Ottawa Senators (the 8th worst team in the league as Winnipeg just moved past them) play besides people in Ottawa? Besides, hasn’t these outdoor games ran its course? I am sure being at the game might be a great onetime experience, but watching it on TV is a dreadful. The weather kills it. I want to see speed, stickhandling, great passes, shooting, goals but all of it goes away when there is snow (and it is supposed to rain in Vancouver). It’s a cash cow but a complete bore.

Cowen held out and Murray caved in. I thought the contract and the no-trade term was insane then and I suspect that great evaluator of talent GM, feels the same. Gryba’s physical/better and Wiercoch has 16 pts in only 39 games ans is zero in the +/-!!! If what we read is true and Buffalo wuld move Myers, I would put a package together to get him (maybe it would be a great way for Timmy to thank his Uncle for a career in the NHL). I would package up Cowen, Zzzz and Greening and see if he would bite! I love Myers. He has had some growing pains but he’s 6-7, has 8g and 20 pts, is talented and he can really skate. With his reach, a on-coming forward has to make his move at center ice. Got to love that.

St Louis will be much tougher to beat. Miller is a great goatender and a major improvement and the mature version of Ott we have seen this year, is a great replacement for the inconsistent Stewart.

The rumours are swirling in the hockey world; why did Pat Lafontaine leave whe only a short time ago he was going to be the “steward” of change.

If he was miffed at the trade, I don’t get it. To me, effectively the Sabres got 2 first round draft picks and third. Halak is not a starting goaltender, they got a 1st and 3rd ropund pick and Stewart will certainly be traded either for a first round pick, a front line player of both.

Perhaps Patty Lafontaine didn’t approve of the way it was done; it is rumoured Timmy went straght to the owner. That’s never good form but it is the way things are done here in Ottawa.

The story does make for some intriguing discussions though, wasn’t Lafontaine brought in to re-establish the pride, honour, respect, integrity of the old days when the team wasn’t in the cellar? Wasn’t he oversee the class restored? But he leaves, days before the draft…there is something rotten in Den….Buffalo. Any poop on this pile of manure Bruce?

Bobby,
You’ve reached a new low. All you write is negativity now. Pretty much not worth the read anymore. I guess anyone could go on a web site for a particular NHL team and constantly trash them, but then, what would be the point?

I loved the game yesterda! With 54k fans, I wouldn’t describe it as a “failure” (I thought they had trouble selling tickets?). When Vancouver and NYR swapped coaches, I predicted the Canucks would go south and the Rangers north. NY has won 33 of 62 after a horrendous start, Canucks 28 of 63 after a good one. Its the Yosemite Sam effect!

I thought the team, woke up and played great, well most of them played great. As predicted, the usual suspects didn’t show up. Karlsson didn’t free wheel like he did against his freinds and countrymen who play for Detroit. He didn’t have 6 shots. Karly was pressed hard, early and often and it certainly showed in his play. Again, he led the team in give aways with 3 (he had far more that I counted and he had many “turn overs”). He was on the ice for the only two goals Vancouver scored (it’s amazing how often that happens) and he had all of 2 shots. How may times was he caught up the ice, conceded a corner, was beat to and off a loose puck? But, he did score a goal on the PP but was awful 5 on 5. He is consistent. On Vancourver’s first goal, he allowed a Canuck to beat him to the puck (which he does often) and led directly to a goal scored against. On the other Vancouver goal he floundered in his own end and gave it away and Vancouver scored. It happens evertime the Sens play a team that is physical.

Methot was OUTSTANDING but he will wear a minus 1 because of Karly. Since Karly is on the ice far more than any other Sen for goals scored against, many have been wearing “minus” numbers because of his defiant disregard to defence. The boys doing the game called him a “rover”…..can you imagine????

As for the other usual suspect, Zibanisbad was even worse. The “Shooter” had 1 shot on goal. Of course he didn’t score a goal and again and he didn’t assist on one. He has 4 goals in 33 games. Oh yes, Sean Couturier now has 31 points, 6 more that Zzzz and he plays against the best every night and is the go to guy on the PK (Zzzz does neither).

The DAC likes Zzzz in the middle. He said “he makes others around him better”. Nonsense! What I see every game is him behind the play!!! For much of the game it looked like there were only 2, Ryan and Hoffman (who didn’t score a goals but was great, rocket for a shot, getting in position to score, showing of his poise and amazing speed and he comes all the way back!!!). York, Yorks, Yorkie says Zzzzz is very physical, he had all of one hit which is better than the game before when he didn’t have any! Oh yes, he won less than 10% of his draws.

So, who likes him in the middle?

But lets forget about the numbers, I look at effort. Karlsson plays hard when there is open space. Zzzz plays on periphery. Neither of them like the corners and neither of them will ever win a one on one battle (Zzzz is “big and strong” at 6-2 210). But, we did witnessed heart, passion and intensity in every shift played by others and in particular little Conacher.

Good bounce back win by the Sens. I thought Vancouver defensively played a poor game and I also think Lack is not a good goalie. He seemed to struggle on just about every shot. A good sign to watch for in evaluating a goalie is to see whether he makes saves look easy or do most shots end up as visually tough saves, rebounds and general chaos around the net. I really can’t see Vancouver making the playoffs. The Sens are now prime to sweep the road trip as Edmonton, Calgary and Winnipeg can be had.

I too was suprised to see LaFontaine turn tail so quickly but again it looks like a Murray jumped over his boss to talk to the owner. Churlish behaviour, not unlike that of Murray throwing stones at someone just trying to do his job (Magnotta of the Fourth Period) and then we have the usuals here in town parroting what Murray says instead of asking him if he isn’t going to trade Spezza, why isn’t he sending out feelers about the new contract? With the cap going up it would not be unreasonable for Spezza to ask for 7-8M a year and you know someone out there looking for an experienced centre will give it to him.

Now there is talk that if Spezza is traded Erik Karlsson will be the new captain. If so, what will the media do if he turns his back to them for a month? Will that now be acceptable behaviour for a star player in this league? There are those in the league that are ultra-talented but shy from media (Phil Kessel comes to mind) but Karlsson has never been shy of letting loose the little peas that bounce around in his head, either on Twitter or other media sources. But Murray has never had any standards of behaviour for others so why should Karlsson have any for himself?

Eugene Melnyk says the team is a buyer, but the team will need to win nearly 17 of its last 23 games to make the playoffs. Murray says he does not want draft picks but we were told the Ottawa management are geniuses at drafting and that Lazar is the next Brendan Shanahan. Ian Mendes says he wins everywhere he goes but have the Oil Kings won a championship with Lazar as captain? Has Lazar won any awards? Has he been an MVP?
I’m sure Lazar will be great for us but we heard all this hype for Silfverberg, Zibanisbad and now Lazar.

At some point, Murray needs to stop being “Woe-is-me” and he needs to deliver a Cup…

Mikey, I suspect your absence here is a reflection of how some of the Sens are playing. Are you expressing silent negativity? Some of the players have been awful. Certainly you and the others can comment on that…can’t you? You see Mikey, I think a problem well defined is half solved, you and the others simply choose to ignore it.

Do you like what you see from Hoffman (or are you like Pav and hate em because I like em). If you do, aren’t you curious why he only gets brief stints with in the show? Do you think that accumulating personal stats are more important that the team winning games? Thats all that Karly is good for. Do you still think Zzzz is a centerman and a worthy 6th pick overall? Or do you think we fans have to wait 2 or 3 years? What about Cowen? What about the Team’s record Mikey. Say something my man…..I guess you have, you just didn’t post it publicly.

I’m all negative but I celebrate: Hoffman, Spezza (who is universally hated by so-called Sens fans), Smitty, Methot, Turris, Ryan, MacArthur, Lehner, Anderson, Conacher, Ceci and Boro when he was here. You and the others love the status quo…you love em all. Do you support Philips resigning for another 2 years or more? Is this part of the rebuild? As a outsider, my take is he wouldn’t go anywhere so if the team was ‘desperate enought to want him, they truly have the upper hand. I woulnd’t offer him any contract. I would trade him away for a pale of pucks and immediately promote Boro who at least will make the opposition pay for crossing the blueline!!!! “The Big Rig” put out the welcome mat and in his long career he’s had only 3 or so fights.

Mikey, I have seen great organizations fall because of internal rot that was ignored (Nortel, who had amazing products and recently BlackBerry…and many others). Are you willing to ignore the rot Mikey for fear of being labelled “negative”. I think you are.

Now for the negativity. Murray certainly didn’t convince me that Spezza wasn’t being shopped around and he would be a fool if he didn’t. Spezza has a no-trade clause in his contract so I would suspect he gave the GM the names of organizations he would be willing to be traded to. Spezza was never appreciated here in Ottawa and relationship between him and Murray can’t been described as a love affair like what he had with Annika (who betrayed him…and broke his heart). So a trade would be best for both parties. Pierre is right on…already the Organization and by default the media, have Karly front and center all the time! He is the defacto “face of the franchise”. It is a conflicting message, one wears the C and bad press, the other gets the pics and nothing but praise (even though he doesn’t help the team win games!!!!). There is no doubt Karly will be the next Captain of this hockey club and lead the team to v…lead the team to…….

Looks like the Habs lost last night – they didn’t look good at all. I wonder how the Habs will be without Price. I see that PK scored but from the hi-lights looked brutal on the ice.

Hey Dan – when was the last time I said that “Its too early to panic” – are you stating to take a page out of Bobby’s book and start making stuff up? All you need now is to start contradicting yourself you could be twins.

Looks like the the most tenuous job in the hockey is the one that sits between a Murray and the owner on a organizational chart. Hard to believe that someone thinks that a public newspapers public web site is the exclusive domain of a few supporters of a particular sports team. But that’s the mindset of some here I guess. Agree with the party line or get out very Putin like.
Why is Bryan so upset by Spezza rumours it’s all semantics. They talk all the time I’m sure and while he may not be shopping him actively it’s hard to believe that his name has not been discussed at all. Draeger suggested his name had been discussed that’s all Bruce says 4 execs say no. I tend to believe Draeger unless Bruce wants to reveal the names of his sources.

Dan, my man…you think the games against Edmonton, Calgary and Winnipeg are locks? As much as I would like them to win, I don’t think wins are guaraneed.

They play the Oilers tonight who can really skate. We will see one of he best young centers in the league in the talented (and realy elusive) RNH (Camoron, cut him from the Canadian World Junior Team…because he is so talented). The team has some great young players and allow a lot of goals but they have a much tougher team now with Fraser, Hendricks and Gadzic). I would give Ottawa a 60-40 chance at vitory. The game in Calgary is probably a 70-30 chance for the Sens but I will guarantee a Winnipeg Jet victory. They have a good team that is a lot fun to watch!

Pierre, who really cares what Melnyk says, as long as he keeps paying the bills, I try to dial him out. It can be difficult sometimes though (how is he “Forensic Analysis” going I wonder…he and the GM presented their findings to the NHL in NY, I guess it wasn’t too compelling).

As for Lazar, it is a shame that the team promotes him like they do. They continue to make the same mistake everytime. Whereas I believe one should underpromise (then over deliver) the Sens do the opposite. They did it with Daisey the Air Rifle (who can forget the full page layout and how he was a great replacement for Danny Heatley on Spezza’s line!!!!!). They did the same with Butler, Rund’sbad, Da Costa, Cowen, Silfverberg and Zzzz (who puts you to sleep). It is soooo easy to set the proper expectations and set yourself up for success rather than failure. In the Sens case, they put undue pressure on kid from the get go. It isn’t fair to them but it sells sweaters!!!

I would like to know what Pav thinks but Subban got two points the other night so he has nothing to say (he must have had mixed emotions when the Wings hammered the Sens).
I would like to know what Mike thinks but his contribution is only focussed on criticizing my and I make it very clear…my opinions only. My praise of Spezza, Hoffman, Methot, Conacher and the Turris line and the Team is never recognized but…point out the flaws in Karly and Zzzz, the DAC, DAACs who cannot change a damn thing and I hit an all time low. Mikey cannot find anything wrong in some players or how the team is managed. He’s hit an alltime high!

PAv the last few times I have seen Quinn he has looked ill but perhaps he is just showing his age? It seems like he has lost some weight for sure and his eyes don’t have that glint they used to have.

Was a nice come back by the boys and I hope that Hoffman gets his first soon so he can get that monkey off his back and gain a bit of confidence – he has been everything and more than expected so far.

Was VERY nice to see Cowen out of the line-up and I hope he stays in the press box for a while. It is impossible to understand how he can regress so much…early I was willing to give in to the fact he had his 3rd major injury but the reality is that he just makes slow decisions at the moment and he needs to be much quicker and more decisive.. He had a stretch about 10 games ago where he was getting the puck and making plays but he just looks lost out there now.

If we had Andy in net against the Wings I think it could have been a different outcome and hope he can find some consistency all the way home down the stretch.

Mike – it is what it is bud. I struggle with why I am ever surprised but since we have come all the way back to, “we are lemmings, we cheer mediocrity, we are OK with losing and with players who give no effort, etc…” I think I am done with yet another poster. Would be fine to have discussion on opposite sides of an argument but when there is no discussion, just insults when you don’t agree there really is no point and the whole thing is really, “very silly”.

The really hilarious thing is that on other sites I am the one trying to bring balance back the other way. Karlsson or Zibby aren’t perfect and have areas they can improve a lot – Spezza shouldn’t be traded – Anderson shouldn’t be traded as Lehner hasn’t proven to be a legit NHL starter, etc…I am not looking to just have everyone say the Senators and all they do is above reproach just looking for some middle ground and common sense towards pro sports.

Blue Jackets won yet again and only good thing is the game didn’t go in to OT. If they had come off the break and been sluggish that would have been great but they don’t look like they are going to give anything away…same with the Leafs so it really doesn’t look good for the Senators to make the post season.

Should be an interesting day and a half – I wonder if Philips will get traded and even perhaps Michalek? Both could walk for nothing in the off season.

Hey Pav, I was just poking a bit of fun. I guess we all now know why Luongo did not play against the Sens. The trade stunned me. I think Vancouver will regret trading him as I think Lack lacks what it takes to truly replace Luongo. Time will tell.

Bobby, obviously no team is a lock againzt any team in today’s NHL, however I think the Sens will do very well over the next three games and take at least 5 of 6 points. If I am proven wrong, then I will openly admit that I know less about hockey than any blogger on this site.

Well, that didn’t take long for the Sens to disappoint once again. As promised, I openly admit that I know less about hockey than any other blogger on this site. Not that I know very much but perhaps the rebuild has really been a deconstruction of a once true legitimate Stanley cup contender.

That’s right Pav, Suckubban was terrible. The diminutive Habs went into LA, who are big and physical and lost 2 – 1. Suckubban got the only goal, he registered 7 (SEVEN) hits and he was plus one. I really don’t know what you see with those eyes of yours Pav? And I am the “hater”???

You have to wonder what took so long for the Habs to promote Tinordi. I didn’t understand why he was sent down early in the year. Since his promotion, he and the team have looked better. He can skate and he is very physical which the team desperatley needed. I really like the kid.

The small, gutless, talentless and unworthy Habs now have 75 points, the Sens have 65. Perhap, Pav, the Sens want to be small, gutless, talentless and unworthy.

I don’t ‘troll” other sites…don’t feel the need. This site is great and it allows me to express my opinion. I do it even though I have been called: troll, biggot, prejudiced, misogynistic (someone who hates women, Pav), know nothing, know it all!, arrogant, old and tired and a hater. I am sure I have missed some, so, I wonder how anyone can be offended by honesty. If indeed this hockey club stinks (and their record supports that) yet some still like them and everyting about the Organization, can’t they be described as willing to accept mediocrity? Afterall, it isn’t just this year thay have been bad. If the hockey club loses more games than they win and fans still have faith, can they be described a willing to accept losses. And if a player leads the entire league in give aways, has the 12th worse plus/minus among NHL defencemen, is on the ice (like he was last night and the night before) for far more goals scored against, than for, quits on plays, is horrendous in his own end, can treat the media with disdain, wont take responsibility for poor play (sh%& happens and I’m not an effen God) but still be celebebrated…isn’t it fair to say they are simply following the Marketting Departments lead, acting like lemmings…afterall, they all joined in unisson to boo Spezza (it’s never happened to any other Sen). And they loved the many who were promoted by he MD who have failed miserably. I don’t get to excited by all the name calling, why would a few who “troll other sites (plural!!!)? And I was simply being honest.

Don’t look for any logic coming out of Vancouver. The GM is the one responsible for what’s happening, afterall, he hired Yosemite Sam and the guy is terrible and an embarrassment (many players have said so). His arrogance/conceipt trumps common sense. BobbyLou should have been given the game to play. It was the right thing to do. Loungo leads the franchise in wins and he very popular with his team mates and fans. This one-off game was important to him but he was denied the opportunity by a pompous idiot.

As predicted, Yosemite Sam turned this high scoring team into a boring loser. He shamed the players, the Coach, GM, Organization and the Owner with his behavior.

Not that it matters I’m from the Ottawa Sun distribution area, they try to sell to me all time, I don’t believe in a lot of their editorial content either does that mean I’m not allowed to voice my opinion, when they invite commentary? But the point really is you can go and read and comment anywhere you want and supposedly ignore anyone’s posts youwant as well and you are certainly free to manage your time as you see fit Mike, as am I. Comment on my posts or don’t it doesn’t matter you have that right. How you choose to spend your time is of no interest to me.

I think Quinn is a man who has been large all his life and as he settles into old age certain truths become evident, there are very few extra large overweight men in their eighties. Gotta take care of yourself or perish, we are so used to seeing quinn moon faced and heavy, a thin older looking version is a jolt. I believe he was a heavy smoker (of cigars at least) and from experience I know tobacco always exacts its toll eventually. The piper has to be paid at some point, something that young people are blind to, I sure was.

I agree Kevin. My main point is the same tired trashings being brought up over and over again. As you said, people can post what they want, as I can post re how tiresome they are. Also, anyone who continues to bash the team over and over again can probably expect to read negative posts re their view point, just as they are free to call fans who don’t trash, lemmings.

Fair enough Mike, speaking for myself I continue to make negative points to counterbalance what I consider to be outlandishly and often undeserved praise of everything to do with the Senators especially in the local media, which has a huge influence over the average fan.
It’s all been covered true, but when I read the papers and listen to the radio I hear more of the same old propaganda.
I like Zibs potential and thing that he’s going to be a solid pro, but the hype was built up so high it’s difficult for anyone to live up to. This seems to be a recurring theme from Runblad and the many others named here often. It’s a shame to me that a guy like Cowan who was also unreasonably hyped is now seemingly scapegoated with criticism that only is surpassed by the finger pointing at Spezza. Others seem impervious to any critique of their play at all no matter how bad they perform there is almost a cult like zeal to defend everything about them, I can’t help but wonder why and question it.
Recently I see the same campaign of superlatives building around Curtis Lazar, keep in my mind that I really like what I have seen of the player and had hoped that the Leafs could realistically land him or Bo Horvat in last years draft. Lately I’ve been hearing the usual suspects on 1200 ratcheting up the hype on Lazar and with the Sens having no 1st rounder, by the time next years camp opens he’s in danger of being viewed as a saviour, which is a bad place to put a guy who is 19 and picked 17th overall. But he may well be everything they are saying, but why set the expectations so high? Seats need selling is my guess.
That’s a few reasons why I post what is perceived as negative comments, everyone is free to react or not react,agree or ignore.

But Mikey, what do you think about the Senators (we all know how you feel about me). Say someting about the players, team, coaches, GM! What do you think of the trade. Lemmmings shlemmings…..what do you think! If you don’t express anything at all, what the hell can we all think. Isn’t silence a signal that all is good?

I talk on many issues Mikey. Tell what you think about the DAC’s inability to stem the tide of goals scored. What woud you do if your were coach. What do you think about a “star prospect” that has 4 goals in 35 games…yet gets every opportunity. What do you think about Philips signing with the club for 2 more years? What do you think about Bobby Ryan’s comments about line changes? What do you think about Karly leading the league in Gva, 11th worst plus/minus among defencemen and leading the team by a large margin being on the ice for goals scored against (far more that goals scored for). What is your opinion of the team in this the 3rd year of the reguild. Do you think Hemsky and his 2 shots per game average is going to be good on the Spezza line (if so, why?). Was moving Conacher out a good move?

You see MIkey, you call all these issues I bring up “trashing” I have a different opinion. I am willing to say something about them…you aen’t (but I suspect you think about it). Don’t be like Pav and only jump on here to lambaste me…..get involved in a discussion and support you argument. Negative you say? Perhaps you are so very focussed on me pointing ot the failures you choose to ignore how I have celebrated: Smitty, Spezza, Conacher, Methot, Boro, Turris, MacArthur, Ryan, Ceci and at times, the goaltending.

You see Mikey, I want the team to be better. If I don’t here any objections from you and some others, I have to make the assumption you don’t really care. I think there has been a double standard here for years. Some are allowed to float and quit. And now…now that the Team is certainly out of the playoffs, the DAC is outraged and says the effort isn’t good enough…..he should have addressed it back in October not in March (sorry Mikey, was that too negative?).

What do you think of Spezza Mikey…he is second on the team in scoring and he’s played with Michalek (10g) and Zibanisbad (11g)? Don’t you think 47 points in 57 games is damn good given his linemates ((Turris has MarcArther and Ryan who have 19 and 22 but Spezza has more points than Turris….and comments Mikey). Hell Mikey, what do yo think of anything?????

Who will win today, will the team compete next year, do you think they will win the Cup in 2016…do you care? I do and that is why I point out the good and the bad. Everyone will know where I stand…I suspect no on knows where you stand.

Bobby do you genuinely want to discuss topics? I don’t believe so. You are all over Mike (or you condescendingly like to call him, “Mikey”) for not having an opinion but he has had opinions and your only response, just like it is to all of us who don’t come on here daily and trash Murray, Karlsson, Zibanejad or the coaches is that he is a lemming, celebrates mediocrity, enjoys losing, etc…

It is simply amazing that this is lost on you. Your writing style essentially eliminates any discussion because you bring up old, almost useless stats (the +/- being a favourite) to support your arguments but the completely ignore them when it comes to your favourite players.

Tell me Bobby, why is it OK for Spezza to have the team’s worst +/- and one of the worst in the league? I know, it because of excuse A (Karlsson is bad), B (Michalek is bad) & C (Zibanejad is bad).

Tell me Bobby, who are the other players around Karlsson for GVA? Taylor Hall, Joe Thornton, Kessel and my goodness!!! Subban and Doughty – the two best D of all time. Even Trouba – the soon to be best D of all time is right up there. Why is that? Do you think it is because they have the puck a lot and try to make plays? Sometimes, even for those perfect players, attempts at making plays don’t work? I know!! Karlsson sucks defensively so that is why he gives it away but those OTHER guys have had bad bounces, poor team mates or the statisticians are against them.

On another note, Spezza is 6th for Center’s in GVA and the players around him have a lot more TKA’s as well.

Spezza is also near the bottom in hits for Center’s as well with most of the players around him having played far, far, far less games. Some guys who have more hits than Spezza this year include DaCosta (12 games played), Kevin Porter (12 games), Ryan Strome (20 games), Freddie Hamilton (11 games).

Tell me this too Bobby – who do Doughty and Subban have 31 TKA COMBINED while Karlsson has 55 all by his lonesome? I know!!! The Senators have a plan so that Karlsson is the only one able to get pucks out of a scrum and the other guys all win their board battles so someone else can have the TKA to their credit. It is a greedy, stat first players against hard nosed, good Canadian team players.

Kevin. I agree again. What I was alluding to was the same old tired negative points brought up over and over again by someone who I won’t name. (it rhymes with lobby)

Bobby,
See the above. I’ve given my opinions many times but here are a few again:

-Re coaching. If the Sen’s don’t make the playoffs which obviously appears imminent, I believe they should make a change for next year. Perhaps someone like Jacques Martin, who has the ability to institute a defensive system and make great goaltenders look even better. It appears MacLean isn’t head coaching material despite winning coach of the year last year. That being said, hopefully he’ll prove me wrong. I’ve seen many coaches in the past do way more with less talent then the Sen’s have.

-Re Spezza. I’ve always liked him and I believe he is still the Sen’s best centre. He should be resigned ASAP which will be this summer. With Spezza, it always seems fans either love him or hate him.

-Re Phillips. That was a tough call. He’s been a solid team player for a long time and deserves the opportunity to finish his career in Ottawa. He also gave the team a bit of a home team discount and with all of the Sen’s young d, he can definitely be a much needed mentor on and off the ice. He won’t be the difference between success and failure.

-Re Karlsson. He’s a world class talent that obviously needs to improve his consistency and defensive game. I believe that if you took a poll of the other 29 teams, it would be unanimous that every team would take him in a minute. He’s also only 22 so there is a ton of room for improvement in all aspects of his game.

-Re Cowen. I still like the kids potential and as they say, you can’t teach big. I’d like to see how he does starting fresh next season, with more recovery time from is major surgery.

Re the Sen’s defence in general. They are going to have to move some in the summer, perhaps for draft picks or forwards, because they have too many right now. It appears Borocop and Klaessan are both ready for the show.

I don’t think we should change the coach just yet Mike. The D has been in flux the entire time MacLean has been here and this year he was saddled with the youngest D in the league which it has turned out is a horrible way to be competitive in the NHL.

His style suits a lot of the players and I think if the D corps improves (via some FA signings, guys maturing and getting better over the summer and some AHL call-ups) I think we would see a big turn around.

I would have no issue with replacing the assistant coaches for established NHL coaches though.

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About the authors

Bruce Garrioch is an award-winning journalist and a must-read in the hockey community. A Day-Oner at the Ottawa Sun, Garrioch is one of the top sports journalists in the country, covering the Senators since their return to the NHL in 1992-93. A 2009 winner of an Ontario Newspaper Award for his coverage of the Dany Heatley saga, Garrioch has a strong ability to break news and brings inside information with his Sunday NHL column, one of the most popular in the country. It is read by GMs, players and coaches who want the inside scoop. Garrioch has covered the 2008 Stanley Cup final for Sun Media, the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City and 2006 Games in Turin, Italy. Mainly, Garrioch has the pulse of the Ottawa Senators. If people want to know what's happening they turn to him to get the info on contracts, negotiations, signings, trades and, of course, games.

Don Brennan is a Day 1 employee of the Ottawa Sun. He has spent the majority of his 23 years as a sports reporter/columnist, covering the Senators since their return to the NHL in 1992, and prior to that writing about the Rough Riders, 67's and other sports. Brennan also wrote a Page 6 column in the Sun for nine months. A native of North Bay, Brennan moved to attend Centennial College in 1978. He remained in Toronto for a decade, working first as a freelancer, than an editor with the Toronto Sun. Brennan has lived in Ottawa full time ever since.

Don Brennan and Bruce Garrioch are Ottawa's all-star hockey writing duo, and will be regularly contributing to Off The Posts.

Their combined experience covering local, national and international hockey means they have the sources to get the inside information on the Senators and the NHL which might not be available to others.

Check back often for notes, quotes and commentary. They might even disagree with each other once in awhile.